I think I love this place more and more every day. Some of the highlights recently have been boating on the Donau River, seeing beautiful churches and buildings, swimming, playing in the park, and a visit from a PA friend and her group that was visiting Vienna (they are doing a study abroad in Romania.)
The Augustinerkirche is beautiful. I absolutely loved it. They have the most beautiful Neoclassical Tomb of Maria Christina inside as well. I feel like every church we walk into during our Art & Architecture class is breathtaking and I am so grateful to get to experience so many different churches.
Fourth of July weekend was a blast. We went paddle boating and rowing with a big group one night and it was so fun. I think I have found a new love for rowing, it is awesome! We also went to Prater (the amusement park) all dressed in our red, white, and blue! We ate at a traditional Viennese restaurant and rode 4 person bikes. That evening we went back on the Donau to continue with some American style celebrations and tried to make root beer floats. Only problem - root beer is definitely not a popular drink here. So we made Fanta floats instead. Renny (sweet girl who is from Hungary) and I got a boat and went around on the River and it was the perfect end to the day. On Monday we went to Haus des Meeres (an aquarium) and to Zentralfriedhof, the cemetery where famous musicians Beethoven, Mozart, Schubert, Brahms and many more were buried. There is also a small mormon plot and many other sections. The cemetery itself is really big and many of the graves are beautiful.
This past week we went to the Belvedere, Rathaus, and the Opera house. These were some of my favorite days! The Belvedere is where the famous painting The Kiss, by Gustav Klimt is displayed along with other incredible pieces. The Rathaus is the main government building in Vienna and we were able to take a tour of it! The rooms inside are magnificent and it was so fun to hear about the different events they have going on there. The Opera house was also such an interesting tour and it was so cool to see backstage and where the royalty had a reserved room.
This weekend Hannah Kruman (a friend from Philadelphia) came with a group of friends from her Romania study abroad group and I was able to show them around Vienna. We had the best time seeing some sights, having Spaghetti Eis, shopping at a thrift store for Star Wars rings, going to waffle night with the YSAs, and going to Prater.
On Saturday, most of our study abroad group went to the Kirche am Steinhof which is an amazing Art Nouveau styled building. It was absolutely beautiful inside with the stained glass designed by Koloman Moser, which in one part depicts doing things unto the less fortunate. Absolutely Gorgeous! Afterwards, we got dinner and played frisbee in the park. There were a few cute kids playing soccer that kept kicking the ball towards us. At first, they acted upset when we would kick their ball around with them but a few minutes later would not leave us alone, they wanted to play after all! Talking to little kids in German might be one of my favorite things, they are so adorable! We also tossed the frisbee around with them which they thought was so fun because they had never played before and asked where they could get one!
Sunday was spent saying goodbye to the International Ward and relaxing in the park. It was my last Sunday in Vienna because we are headed to Budapest this weekend and Rome the weekend after that. I am so excited about the upcoming trips but saying goodbye was sad, I cannot believe how quick the time has gone. I am so glad to have gotten to be able to attend the same ward each week that I’ve been here and to have been a part of their ward for a little bit. I am so excited to visit Budapest this weekend and see the country as a tourist in jeans before I am back in a few months as a missionary in a skirt.
Szia!
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